Northern Kentucky (10-6, 2-2) vs. Illinois-Chicago (6-11, 1-3)
Credit Union 1 Arena, Chicago; Friday, 7 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Two senior guards will be on display as Tyler Sharpe and Northern Kentucky will go up against Tarkus Ferguson and Illinois-Chicago. Sharpe has scored 21 percent of the team's points this season and is averaging 16 over his last five games. Ferguson is averaging 14.4 points over the last five games.
SAVVY SENIORS: Illinois-Chicago has relied heavily on its seniors this year. Ferguson, Godwin Boahen, Michael Diggins and Marcus Ottey have combined to account for 55 percent of the team's scoring this year and 62 percent of all Flames points over the last five games.SHARPE CAN SHOOT: Sharpe has connected on 33 percent of the 115 3-pointers he's attempted and has made 13 of 41 over his last five games. He's also converted 79.3 percent of his free throws this season.
WINNING WHEN: Northern Kentucky is a perfect 8-0 when it holds an opponent to 64 points or fewer. The Norse are 2-6 when opponents score more than 64.
ACCOUNTING FOR ASSISTS: The Norse have recently used assists to create buckets more often than the Flames. Illinois-Chicago has 30 assists on 70 field goals (42.9 percent) over its past three games while Northern Kentucky has assists on 42 of 68 field goals (61.8 percent) during its past three games.
DID YOU KNOW: Northern Kentucky as a collective unit has made 8.7 3-pointers per game this season, which is second-most among Horizon teams.
